Saturday, June 21, 2003

Kenya suspends Somalia flightsNAIROBI, 21 JUNE 2003 (CNN) -- The office of the Kenyan president Saturday issued a directive suspending all flights to and from Somalia, Kenya Airport Authority officials told CNN Saturday.

The ban effectively grounded 10 to 15 small to medium-sized aircraft due to take off from Nairobi's private Wilson Airport Saturday morning with cargo and passengers. It also meant that flights from Somalia were not allowed to enter Kenyan air space.

It was not immediately clear whether the very few commercial carriers flying from Somalia to Nairobi's larger Jomo Kenyatta International Airport were affected by the directive, however the government statement implied all flights and overflights would be affected.

The ban on such flights appears to be connected to current fears among American officials that an aircraft could be used as a weapon to fly into a building associated with U.S. interests in Nairobi, such as the U.S. Embassy. MORE